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              Philips Drachten

              Philips to fire 6,000 staff to cut costs

              First flight from Eelde to Munich

              Eelde Airport secures two new summer routes

              A hydrogen bus.

              Lobbying for the North: Building a Hydrogen Valley

              An American Groninger in Madurodam

              Groningers have the best sense of humor in the Netherlands, study claims

              A band playing at a live concert

              Sold-out Eurosonic Noorderslag brings the best in European music to Northern Netherlands

              Groningen_station_hall

              Groningen landmark may be demolished as part of railway station redevelopment project

              Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

              Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

              Netherlands pledges more support for Ukraine

              Lidl to close its Assen city center store

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                Groningen welcomes Qatar 2022 with cheer and criticism

                Groningen welcomes Qatar 2022 with cheer and criticism

                The anti Zwarte Piet protest in Emmen

                Emmen: Four people still detained after anti Zwarte Piet protest

                The inside of Forum Groningen

                “Let’s Gro” opens a discussion on the future of Groningen

                What about food in student city Groningen?

                Where to get knockout fries in the northern provinces

                Ukraine Food opens in Groningen

                Ukraine Food opens in Groningen

                Buses will no longer travel through the Grote Markt in Groningen

                Buses will no longer travel through the Grote Markt in Groningen

                “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                Noorderzon festival returning to Groningen in August

                Noorderzon festival returning to Groningen in August

                Plans for extensive Kardinge residential expansion revealed

                Plans for extensive Kardinge residential expansion revealed

                Trending Tags

                • Culture
                  • All
                  • Dutch history
                  • Typical Dutch
                  Eurosonic Noorderslag

                  Eurosonic Noorderslag

                  Ending the Year with a Bang!

                  Ending the Year with a Bang!

                  It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                  It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                  A devastating defeat; an unexpected victory

                  A devastating defeat; an unexpected victory

                  Sinterklaas is Here!

                  Sinterklaas is Here!

                  A moment from NFF 2021

                  Noordelijk Film Festival 2022 has started

                  “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                  “Tall Ships” Race coming to Friesland this week

                  Noorderzon festival returning to Groningen in August

                  Noorderzon festival returning to Groningen in August

                  Drenthe FestiValderAa to celebrate its tenth anniversary in style

                  Drenthe FestiValderAa to celebrate its tenth anniversary in style

                  Trending Tags

                  • People
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                    • Expats
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                    Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

                    Watch: A workplace that sells itself – CTO on working at Ocean Grazer

                    It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                    It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

                    People protesting on a street in Groningen.

                    Former Sugar Homes residents protest for return of withheld deposit

                    I’m not Black; I’m African

                    I’m not Black; I’m African

                    A letter from the Editor – Internationals from 120 countries: Welcome to Groningen, Leeuwarden, Assen and Emmen!

                    MPs call for cap on foreign student numbers in order to ensure ‘accessibility’

                    Watch: I’m 100% positive about my Groningen internship – Hanze international student

                    Watch: I’m 100% positive about my Groningen internship – Hanze international student

                    Common cold becoming too common

                    Watch: We’re hiring internationals to help us with foreign clients – ACS Buildings CEO

                    Watch: We’re hiring internationals to help us with foreign clients – ACS Buildings CEO

                    “It really felt like a job and a responsibility”: A chat with the Groninger behind the Dutch Covid-19 News WhatsApp group

                    “It really felt like a job and a responsibility”: A chat with the Groninger behind the Dutch Covid-19 News WhatsApp group

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                      Watch: We’re hiring internationals to help us with foreign clients – ACS Buildings CEO

                      Watch: We’re hiring internationals to help us with foreign clients – ACS Buildings CEO

                      Small but mighty: TECNED is looking for internationals to help it grow

                      Small but mighty: TECNED is looking for internationals to help it grow

                      Talk on International Growth by local founders to take place on the 21st of June

                      Talk on International Growth by local founders to take place on the 21st of June

                      Groningen to host its first sustainable business day

                      Groningen to host its first sustainable business day

                      Companies in Dutch energy sector seek next cohort of young leaders

                      Companies in Dutch energy sector seek next cohort of young leaders

                      Annual Beta Business Days event a success

                      Annual Beta Business Days event a success

                      What’s it like working in Northern Netherlands?

                      Startup Visa Crew offers support to Ukrainian entrepreneurs (Переклад українською)

                      Gasunie to build €60 million green gas plant in Delfzijl

                      Gasunie to build €60 million green gas plant in Delfzijl

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                      Home People

                      Local entrepreneurs give back to homeless people

                      Traci White by Traci White
                      August 15, 2018
                      in People
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                      Homeless haircut
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                      July 29th was a special day for 20 homeless men living in Groningen: a handful of international business owners from across the north treated them to a free haircut, shave and meal in the city.

                      All of the participating local business owners are internationals living in the north, originally hailing from South Africa, Cape Verde, Surinam and the United States. The Northern Times spoke with one of the participating entrepreneurs, Thomas Sykes, about what inspired the guys to give back.

                      The Northern Times: So when did this event take place?

                      Thomas Sykes: We did it on July 29th.

                      TNT: And how did the idea come about?

                      Sykes: My colleague, Kevin and another friend, Riklis, they have a friend who’s a videographer [Albert Mexes], and he wanted to make a video, so we decided to do something – a good deed – so we thought of the homeless. And we thought about a haircut and a dinner.

                      TNT: How did you notify them about the event?

                      Sykes: We got in touch with Joram Krol, he’s the photographer, and Siebe [Zwerver from Straatwijs] and they supplied us with the homeless guys. [Editor’s note: Straatwijs, an organisation providing aid and support to the local homeless population also organised a free meal for homeless men and women at IKEA in May]. I myself I already have two guys that I told them they can come once a month, but they come once every 3 months, and I take care of them. We were only expecting 10, but 20 guys showed up.

                      TNT: Were there any homeless women who took part?

                      Sykes: We specialise in working with men, but next time, if there is a lady who wants to come too, then we’ll have a lady who can provide haircuts for them.

                      TNT: Do you think that this idea will inspire other locals to get involved in some way?

                      Sykes: We’re hoping that people see it and just want to do something, it doesn’t cost anything. I did mine on a Sunday, if I did it in the week then I’d have to turn clients away. A Sunday is just a free day, and we could all do it on a Sunday. [Dave Pretorius and Bouwdewijn Brink] were great, they wanted to fit everyone in for a meal between the regular customers, but they really wanted to treat them like normal people. With a nice haircut, no one could tell the difference.

                      Free haircuts international

                      Hair dressers offering free services to homeless men and women is an increasingly common initiative in the Netherlands and other countries. Back in May, Motiva Straatadvocaten (legal aid lawyers) in Amersfoort asked Darlyn Rafael to provide a trim for homeless men and women. An Australian barber named Nasir Sobhani gives free haircuts on his day off and is known as the Street Barber. In Britain, the Haircuts4Homeless organisation offers free trims across the United Kingdom and Ireland. A non-profit organisation in Rhode Island in the United States provides haircuts, showers and medical exams through a programme called Shower to Empower: many homeless men and women who visit the non-profit’s mobile trailer come there in preparation for a job interview.

                      TNT: How did the men respond to being pampered like this?

                      Sykes: Words can’t explain it, they all just had a big smile and this look on their faces, like, “wow, what a transformation.” It was great to see them all complimenting each other afterwards. They were all just really respectful, it was like one big family.

                      TNT: Are you aware of any similar events in the Netherlands prior to this?

                      Sykes: Not really. None of us are Dutch ourselves, and a number of the responses we got from Dutch people were only talking about money and what they lose. When I first moved here, they said nothing is for free. But my mom always said, “if you give someone something, don’t expect anything back in return.”

                      TNT: Are you considering doing this sort of thing again at some point?

                      Sykes: We thought about doing it once a month, maybe every two months. This one was just a trial phase, but before we do it again, we’ll sit down. I don’t mind doing it once a month, it’s no biggie.

                      Homelessness in the Netherlands and the north


                      As of 2016, nearly 30,000 people were homeless in the Netherlands: the population has almost doubled within 10 years (there were 17,000 homeless people in 2009). In comments to Een Vandaag, Lia van Doorn from the Utrecht University of Applied Sciences stated that the rising numbers are due to an increasingly expensive housing market and little to no additional income or benefits for people. The province of Groningen estimates that nearly 759 people are homeless, but the number of available spaces for them to seek shelter has been decreasing in recent years. In 2015, homeless support foundation Zienn stated that they were providing services to 2,509 people in Groningen, Drenthe and Friesland.

                      Photo source: Screenshot from video by Albert Mexes

                      Tags: barbershopBlock and Barrelscharitygiving backGroningenhaircuthomelessStraatwijsThomas Sykes
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                      The Northern Times

                      NorthernTimes.nl is an English-language news site for internationals and anyone interested in news and activities in the three northern Dutch provinces of Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe. The website provides daily coverage and summaries of local news in the north, as well as human interest stories, backgrounds and a regional events calendar. The Northern Times is an initiative of the International Welcome Center North in cooperation with Persbureau Tammeling BV, which owns and operates the website.

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                      NorthernTimes.nl is an English-language news site for internationals and anyone interested in news and activities in the three northern Dutch provinces of Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe. The website provides daily coverage and summaries of local news in the north, as well as human interest stories, backgrounds and a regional events calendar. The Northern Times is an initiative of the International Welcome Center North in cooperation with Persbureau Tammeling BV, which owns and operates the website.

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